Certain refrigerator appliances include sealed systems for cooling chilled chambers of the refrigerator appliance. The sealed systems generally include a compressor that generates compressed refrigerant during operation of the sealed system. The compressed refrigerant flows to an evaporator where heat exchange between the chilled chambers and the refrigerant cools the chilled chambers and food items located therein.
Recently, certain refrigerator appliances have included linear compressors for compressing refrigerant. Linear compressors generally include a piston and a driving coil. The driving coil receives a current that generates a force for sliding the piston forward and backward within a chamber. During motion of the piston within the chamber, the piston compresses refrigerant.
Utilizing linear compressors to generate compressed refrigerant can have challenges. For example, certain linear compressor draw heated vapor refrigerant within a shell of the linear compressor into the chamber where the heated vapor refrigerant mixes with other refrigerant prior to compression and negatively affect performance of the linear compressor. Such linear compressors can also recirculate lubricating oil into the flow of refrigerant entering the chamber. As another example, friction between the piston and a wall of the chamber can negatively affect operation of the linear compressors if the piston is not suitably aligned within the chamber. In particular, friction losses due to rubbing of the piston against the wall of the chamber can negatively affect the efficiency of an associated refrigerator appliance.
Accordingly, a linear compressor with features for regulating fluid flow into a chamber of the linear compressor would be useful. In addition, a linear compressor with features for limiting friction between a piston and a wall of a cylinder during operation of the linear compressor would be useful.